About Us

My Gluten Free Story

I grew up in sunny So Cal as an only child, well, there was me and the dog, TJ.  He was my constant companion even when I was sick.  My entire life was filled with ear infections, headaches, sinus infections, tummy aches, depression, and a general feeling of "crumminess" which continued and worsened when I got into my early 20's.  I made it, by the grace of God, through a challenging Biochemistry degree and teacher's credentialing program, then I received a Biology teaching position at a charter school in Utah. During that year my condition worsened and I survived through at least 4 sinus infections in about 6 months.  In between the sinus infections I never felt well, and alone in my struggle to survive.  I had friends that helped me, but it was hard being away from a family that would take care of me whenever I felt yucky.

My last infection was the worst, the doctor changed my prescription 3 times in the same month and there was no improvement; I was still running 101+ degree fevers with migraines,  chest pain, and stomach pains I thought came from not being able to eat much.  At this point I had run out of sick days and had to go to work or forfeit pay.  Finally, just before I was about to kick the bucket, my dad called me and strongly suggested that I should go to urgent care.  After explaining to him that I was much to sick to go, I went to urgent care and they found that I had bronchitis developing into pneumonia (see I was on my way to death!).  This MD gave me a shot of antibiotics, and I was feeling much better in spite of my own disbelief.  These 6 months had stripped my body of all good bacteria and I was left prone to more infections.

Bruised and battered, I finished out a painful first year of teaching (my students would probably agree), and went back home to California for my mother's graduation for her MA in Management (Go Mom! You are an inspiration!).  In between the graduation festivities, her motherly instincts said, "Enough's enough!" Then she lovingly carted me off to a homeopathic doctor who was able to tell me, "you have food allergies."

"Really," I said "I don't feel sick when I eat."

"Yes, you are allergic to wheat, dairy, pets, carrots, parsley, flax seeds, red peppers...."

"What?! That's my entire diet - well not the pets, but you see what I mean. What do I do?"

"Stay away from these foods," he stated with a hint of simplicity.

I contemplated what that meant... Sandwiches? COOKIES! Aunt Kathy's Lemon Poppy Seed Bread!!! Tortillas!  Homemade sourdough bread! Burritos! Cereal. Ice Cream - better yet, Frozen Yogurt from Golden Spoon!!! And so much more was being ripped from my life.  He also told me I should consider getting rid of my puppy.

Get rid of WHO?! Kindly, I told the doctor that was impossible and I will learn to live without wheat and dairy, but not my baby girl.  (She is now two and going on three, and still spoiled as ever!)

And so, my gluten-free-dairy-free journey began.

The most challenging part was trudging through the tears and emotions that came with such a dramatic life change - confusion, brokenness, inadequacy, and feeling as though my immune system had changed me into an alien species. Also, learning what was clean for me to eat and what was not, how to order from a menu, conveying all of this to my friends, family, and fiance; most of whom had never considered anyone being allergic to these kinds of foods. 

Overtime, I learned how to alter foods and read package labels to find these nasty poisons. I routinely thank God for bringing me to a diagnosis, allowing me to live and share my story. The best part has been learning that I can create my own delicious food in the kitchen, and develop some of my own recipes or adapt them from others. I have found ways to make delicious foods that my husband prefers over the "regular" stuff.  I love food. :)


"The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows who trusts in Him." Nahum 1:7


What's your story?

Our Story

God has blessed our lives in so many ways. We wanted to share the story of how we and decided to marry.  Don and I began our college education in 2003. He started working for my dad at the mechanics shop on campus, and we met one day when I came by the shop to drop something off for my dad. I remember walking into the shop and seeing someone (Don) working on a tire and I quickly moved my eyes around the room to find my dad, but by the time I looked back towards the man working on a golf cart he was standing right in front of me, “Hi, I’m Don. What’s your name?” Don was always very nice to me and asked me to go to comedy shows, swimming, dancing, wine tasting, and I’m sure there were more. My first impression of Don was, “Uh-oh, he’s going to be trouble. I should stay away from him, because I’m probably going to like him.” So I never said yes to any of his invitations for three years - I had my Biochemistry book - who needs a man when you have a Biochemistry book?!

We then graduated from college, completely white and nerdy, Don with his degree in Physics and Mathematics and me with a degree in Biochemistry, emphasizing in Chemistry. Don stopped by my parents house the Christmas after we graduated, and I had nothing to do that night. My family and Don talked for about an hour until Don decided that he needed to leave and head out to a salsa lesson. As soon as he said “salsa” my mom got so excited, “Oh! I love salsa!!!” “Would you like to come?” Don asked. “No, sadly, I have to work tomorrow,” she answered. Meanwhile, my brain is racing, “this is getting really weird! First he works for my dad and now he is asking my mom to go dancing?” They both turned and looked at me, “Do you want to go?” After a moment of contemplating, I thought “Dancing, isn’t that the activity that embarrasses everyone at weddings and then gets posted on youtube?” and finally I said, “Ok”. After that dance lesson I couldn’t stop thinking about him and when I would see him next. We went swing dancing the next week at Coffee Depot where we later said our vows on November 20, 2010.  He left So Cal and went back to Utah; we became pen pals through email for the next year and a half.

During that year I went to school for my science teaching credential. At the end of the year California was firing teachers and finding any teaching job was difficult; Don suggested that I search for a job in Utah, the very place he’d complained to me about for the last year and a half. Who wants to move to Utah? As it turns out the only job I interviewed for was half an hour from Don and that was the only job offer I received. I moved to Utah and we started dating July 3, 2009. A year later he proposed at Bear Lake, as the sun was setting and people started lighting off fireworks while we were sitting by a campfire eating cheese and drinking wine.

               Two weeks later we found out about Korea and our lives have been insanely busy ever since.  The wedding was a blast! We left for Korea on November 27 and plan to spend lots of time traveling to the beautiful Asian countries.